Where’s Miss Hattie?

If we are outside . . especially Vince, Miss Hattie is right on our heels.  In fact, if I have something in my hand that she thinks might be for her, and she thinks everything we have is for her, she will run into me if I stop quickly.  She will get in front of me and try to fly up and take things out of my hands if I have garden veggies I’m bringing into the house.  I told Vince the other day that if I had $1 for every time I say “Speck . . move!”, then I’d be a rich woman.  He said . . “What about Miss Hattie?  We’re both having to shoo her out of the way so we can walk!”  She’s still the only chicken that ever gets out and I think that’s so funny.

Working in the Driveway

This weekend, Vince was out working in the driveway.  There were some stumps that were too short to push up with the dozer and too short to grab onto with a chain and pull them out so Vince was trying to grind them out.  I was out talking to Vince and I said . . wait a minute . . where’s Miss Hattie?  If Vince is outside, Miss Hattie is close by.  She loves him!  Vince called her and he whistled, which is a sure fire way to get her attention. She didn’t come!  He said “Maybe she hasn’t escaped from the run yet.”  I told him that she had because I had seen her in the front yard earlier.

We both walked back towards the house.  I was calling her name and Vince was whistling for her but she was nowhere to be found.  We were both about to panic (yes, over a chicken!).  Then . . I remembered!  Maybe she was on her nest.

Miss Hattie’s Nest

All of the other chickens lay their eggs in the nesting boxes attached to the coops.  Testing boxes are padded with fresh straw or shavings so the chickens are comfy while laying eggs and so the eggs don’t hit the hard bottom and crack.  Not Miss Hattie!  She has her own private little nest . . a place she found on her own.  Yes, she lays her eggs on the rocks behind a pile of scrap lumber under the carport.   Vince put some wood shavings in a cardboard box right next to where she lays, hoping she would begin laying in the box but nope . . she loves her little spot on the rocks.

That’s where she was.  On her very own nest.  She knew we were calling her but she had a job to do and she was going to do it before she came to see what we were doing.  Humans should be so diligent and dedicated to the task at hand, huh?

She’s just a chicken but to us, she’s a very special chicken and we really like her a lot!  Remember Ruby from the chickens in MO?  It seems there’s always a special chicken in each batch . . one that has her own personality and steals our hearts.  Miss Hattie is that chicken in this batch.  I sure wish Roscoe was still here!  🙁